According to a report by Punch on Saturday, November 8, 2025, the Bishop of the Catholic Diocese of Sokoto, Matthew Kukah, has urged Nigerians to reflect on the kind of values that can unite the country.
He made this call while recalling a famous historical exchange between Nigeria’s founding fathers, Nnamdi Azikiwe and Ahmadu Bello, the Sardauna of Sokoto, on the question of national unity.
Kukah explained that the two leaders had different views on how to build a united nation.
According to him, Dr. Nnamdi Azikiwe believed that for Nigeria to grow into a great nation, the people must forget their ethnic and regional differences but the Sardauna of Sokoto, Ahmadu Bello, disagreed.
He said Nigerians should not forget their differences but rather remember and manage them wisely.
The cleric said the disagreement between the two leaders reflects Nigeria’s long struggle with unity and identity.
He added that the nation’s inability to fully resolve this question has contributed to its current divisions and political instability.
Kukah noted that the ideas of forgetting or remembering differences continue to shape Nigeria’s social and political life.
He said the lack of shared national values and a collective sense of purpose has left the country “moving without motion.”
According to him, Nigerians must now decide which path will bring lasting peace whether to downplay their differences or to embrace them while working toward a common goal.
“Azikiwe said that for us to be a great nation, let’s forget our differences. Sardauna said, no, let us not forget; let us remember them. The implications of forgetting and remembering are what have brought us to where we are today. So, if you find yourself moving without motion, there is a reason,” Kukah recalled. View, More,
Explore More News By Using The Button.